HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Prices rising at British Consulate

What happened to table manners?

Electric fitters scam

Market has turned into a carnival

Re: Silencing the large mouthed cleaner bird

Prices rising at British Consulate

Editor;
On 21st April 2009 I had a copy of my passport certified by the British Consulate in Jomtien, which required rubber stamping and a signature and was charged 1092 baht. I then had another copy done in June 2009 costing 1218 baht and then again on 10th September 2009 for 1450 baht.
Over 5 months the cost had risen by 30%. I understand that these are standard charges for the British Consulate throughout the world but how can these increases be justified when the rate of inflation is so low everywhere? The exercise takes less than 5 minutes to do and to make matters worse I was advised by the assistant there that I would have to come back the next day - a one hour round trip for me - to collect it in spite of me being the only person in the office at the time.
Perhaps those expats who think we are being exploited by the Thais here in Pattaya should add the British Consulate to the list.
Harvey Samuel

What happened to table manners?

Editor;
I recently walked into a restaurant and was again appalled at the lack of table manners being displayed by the patrons. As a child I was brought up to believe that table manners were a sign of one’s heritage and upbringing. It seems that I was overly coached or the rules have gone out the window along with too many other social graces.
I was taught that you bring your food to your mouth not the other way around. I was taught you did not put you elbows or other parts of your anatomy on the table. I was taught you sat in an upright position to eat, not slouching, etc. I was taught that your food was to be chewed and swallowed one bite at a time.
Nowadays, I expect to hear a bell ring and a winner declared for largest food consumption at the fastest time. The winner to receive an additional serving of desert to consume in less than ten seconds.
I observe this not only in restaurants, but in television commercials as if it were the norm.
What happened to social graces and being, for lack of a better term, polite?
Fled the scene

Electric fitters scam

Dear Sir,
Two electric board fitters in a small orange lorry came to my house today. Neither of these men spoke English so I phoned my Thai girlfriend at work. They told her that new cables needed to be fitted to the electric meter. The cable would cost 1,500 baht and the labour would cost 1,000 baht. I told my girlfriend to get them to do the work. She then told me they would go and buy the new cable and would return shortly.
When they returned twenty minutes later they parked up their lorry, and started to unload a ladder. At this point I left them to it and walked to the nearby 7/11 to get money out of the ATM.
On my return less than ten minutes later the job was finished. Thinking that this was rather an expensive labour charge I phoned my girlfriend and told her I wanted a receipt, but they told her they had no receipts with them. So reluctantly I paid them 2,500 baht.
As they drove away, I went to inspect the work they had carried out, and the cable they had just fitted does not look like it’s new, but looks more like it’s second hand.
Has any other reader of you magazine had similar problems with these people?
Yours faithfully,
C. Morgan
Ed’s reply: This is indeed a scam, and we’ve forwarded this letter on to the provincial electricity authority. Although it’s probably too late to get your money back, hopefully your letter will alert others about this scam.

Market has turned into a carnival

Editor;
What gives with the South Pattaya Road market at night? It seems to have turned into a carnival. Maybe people migrate there after bars close. One of the new innovations is a music man with his instrument that he places on the street for all to hear. His music is not on a thunderous level, but it is enough to interfere with sleep. Calls to the city hall don’t seem to work. Whoever it is that’s strumming his instrument must have some protection. Someone should investigate to see if he has license to perform.
If this natural display of pollution isn’t enough the monks at Wat Chaimongkol breakfasts, break forth with sermonizing some days at 5 a.m. They do this with hall doors hanging open and loud speakers outside blasting forth. Sometimes megawatt sound machines are moved into the wat area.
At 8 a.m. on school days an assembly of students is always held outside the wat school, the teacher addressing the students makes a terrible racket with her loud speaker. This all happens underneath the windows of those unfortunate enough to live in Center Condo. Residents of the condo have double glazed doors and windows and built insulated rooms inside their condos in order to sleep or carry out any normal activities.
In this day and age when people are moving into the inner city area to be close to work, shopping, etc., they deserve a little consideration by the powers that be. We need to be quieter, saner and civilized. At the very least mega speakers should be turned down and activities moved in behind closed doors where they belong.
Ray Standiford

Re: Silencing the large mouthed cleaner bird

Editor;
Re: the letter from “Colin” in the Sept. 1st issue of Pattaya Mail entitled: “Silencing the large-mouthed cleaner bird”. I have a suggestion for Colin.
You might try acquiring one or more of a not so rare species of bird called the; “Letter-writing whiner bird”. They are indigenous to the English speaking Western world, although it is possible that they do exist in other parts of the world also. If they do, I have never been able to understand them in order to identify them, but they may be there. The Western varieties that I know about are white, with a white crest, unless of course they have dipped their crest in some brown or black dye.
Although they are indigenous to the Western world, they can be found in ample supply in Thailand as they have a tendency to migrate here often and in many cases actually adapt to their surroundings and stay. Actually they don’t adapt, they just seem to accept the negative aspects of life in Thailand in order to enjoy the more positive aspects.
In any event, this particular species is known to prey on the “Large- mouthed cleaner bird” which may be helpful to you. Of course no one has ever documented an actual kill because the LMCB seems to be able to outmaneuver the LWWB with a screeching, confusing cry which is supposed to interrupt the whiner bird’s sleep and keep it in a weakened condition, but seldom does. The LMCB actually relies more on the aid of another not so rare species, the MIDCB, (Myopic and Indifferent Desk Clerk bird), which seems to be able to hold the LWWB at bay simply by refusing to be intimidated by their Western style bird antics. (Posturing, posing, squawking, yet capable of enjoying the rich foliage of their surroundings, despite continually trying to rearrange it.)
You can trap one of these birds as they are easy to find. You will generally locate one or more perched on a bar stool or fluffing their feathers at one of the many cut rate buffet restaurants located in Thailand.
Other than the coloring, it is easy to recognize them as they are the only species of bird in the world that not only can be caught clutching a newspaper in their talons every day, but also uses its own feathers as writing implements. They also generally have bags under their eyes, but bird scientists have proven beyond a doubt that this variety of birds ongoing insomnia problems are not caused by the screeching of the LMCB, but rather from another common species of bird whose habits they have been afflicted with for some odd reason; the GCB. (Guilty Conscience Bird).
John Arnone
Yasothon

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